You've got a way
by melinda08
Summary: response to the songfic challenge. next up just the way you are
1. Chapter 1

Lyrics_ You've got a way _by Shania Twain

_You've got a way with me_

_Somehow you got me to believe_

_In everything that I could be_

_I gotta say, you really got a way_

Boy does Niles have a way. No one else gets to CC the way does. Whether it's through a one liner or a raised eyebrow, Niles knows how to cut to the chase and get her going just when she needs a pick me up. No one thrills her, challenges her, maddens her, gets her going, or turns her on the way he does. She doesn't know how he does it, but he just _does._ She rarely, if ever, shows her appreciation for him, but that's just their thing. He insults her, she gives it back, and they go about their day with everyone watching and shaking their heads in morbid curiosity. To the outsider it would seem they despise each other, but she knew that for every I hate you they threw at each other's way they were really telling each other how much they meant to one another.

There was a book, The Five Love Languages, that tells people how to read meet each partner's needs in the way they need to be loved. CC didn't need to read that; heck, she could have written that. She felt fortunate in that she and Niles had similar needs. They didn't need to get mushy to know that they were loved. Throw a good zinger in and they knew they were cared for. That was their language, their break from the outside world that no one could penetrate. It was their safety net. When one was not "zinging" then the other one would know something was wrong and would find out what it was. When Niles had his heart attack and didn't take the bait to her set-ups CC was so scared she would never hear his insults again. She would never take for granted again that deep voice she had come to appreciate so much over the years. Others might not get why she put up with his insults, but she knew, and she wouldn't trade them for anything.

_You've got a way with words_

_You get me smiling even when it hurts_

_There's no way to measure what your love is worth_

_I can't believe the way you get through to me_

No one has a better grasp of the English language than Niles. And his accent- it drove her wild with passion, though she'd never admit it. He could turn the simplest word into an insult, and he often did. He rarely let an opportunity go by to get one over on her. But there were the moments behind closed doors when no one was looking that the real Niles came through- tender, caring, loving Niles who wouldn't harm a flea. She knew she could trust him and she would let her guard down, and that rarely happened. But she would give her most trusted possession- her soul- to this man and know that it would be safe with him forever. CC never cried- it just wasn't in her nature- but contrary to popular belief she did hurt and she did allow Niles to be the one to comfort her. He was the only one she wanted by her side when she ached, when things got tough. She knew that he would never tell her darkest secrets to anyone, though he might tease her about it later. CC always landed on her feet, with or without a man, but she sure was glad to have a man like Niles to stand beside her whenever she did fall.

_It's in the way you want me_

_It's in the way you hold me_

_The way you show me just what love's made of_

_It's in the way we make love_

True, they had their raw, animalistic sex and they enjoyed it very much. How could two passionate people such as themselves not have such a crazy sex life? But Niles also proved to be a devoted lover, who prided himself in paying attention to CC's every need. These were the moments she felt closest to him, even more so than the foreplay outside of the bedroom. CC always liked to be in control with all of her past lovers. She never let her guard down for a minute. But with Niles she knew she was loved- she felt it with every step he took. He didn't have to tell her he loved her- she felt it in every thing he did.

_It's just the way you are_


	2. Chapter 2

_Just the way you are by Billy Joel_

_Don't go changing, to try and please me  
You never let me down before  
Don't imagine you're too familiar  
And I don't see you anymore_

CC never was one to change to please a man. That was something Niles liked, no, loved about her. She was her own woman; independent, fierce, proud. She didn't need a man, but she wanted him, and Niles knew that. She may have driven him crazy, but he knew he had a special place for him somewhere in that hidden black box she called a heart.

There was an unconditional love, that was for certain. Behind the barbs and the wittisms was an affection that would go unnoticed by most people. It appeared to be a disdain by most; Niles and CC liked it that way. No one knew what went on behind closed doors, not even Fran and Maxwell. It was hard to say when this started, only that it started with a simple "Butler Boy" and "Trollop". No one knew how far this would go or what road these insults would take them on, but they hoped their words would never end.

They say that the opposite of love was hate, but that was not true. It was indifference. And that was one thing that CC and Niles never felt for each other. They have pretended to not have cared, to not have noticed, but they always knew what the other was doing, how the other was feeling at all times. Sometimes a person could read another like an open book. That was not true in the butler and the socialite's case. They lived for the unpredictability, the uncertainty that they felt around each other. That kept the passion alive, they thrived on the roller coaster that was their romance.

_wouldn't leave you in times of trouble  
We never could have come this far  
I took the good times, I'll take the bad times  
I'll take you just the way you are_

Even when times got bad- Niles knew what CC was up to. In her darkest hour Niles was there for her in his own way. When she went to "the place" he kept tabs on her. He wasn't the flowers and chocolates type of guy- she wouldn't look at him if he were- but when she hurt, he did too. He joked about her condition, but only to show her he cared. If he stopped the jokes she would know something was wrong, and that would just make things worse. He couldn't leave her when she needed him the most. She needed someone she could rely on, not like Maxwell, who never was her type, not really. When Niles had her heart attack CC showed her true colors. It was then that she realized how much she really cared. When faced with the knowledge that she might lose him, she vowed to step up her game. He was her Butler Boy, and she would show him how she felt. She couldn't tell him, not in so many words. But she would let him know, in her barbs, in her looks, in her attitude. The way she visited him, the way she got teary eyed around him, the way she let her guard down- she never did that for anyone, not even Maxwell. CC vowed to stand by Niles, and it was a promise she intended to keep, until the very end.

_I don't want clever conversation  
I never want to work that hard  
I just want someone that I can talk to  
I want you just the way you are_

Niles and CC didn't need to sit and talk about the weather, or about the investors, or about who's who in today's society. That's why she had her business associates for. She needed someone who would accept her for who she was, and she found that in the butler. Who would have thought that? Sometimes she got sick of the pretenses, the games, the phoniness that was show business. She thrived on the pressure, but once in a while she wanted to laugh at life, to laugh at the trivial things. And that's why she had Niles. He taught her not to take herself so seriously. Sbe was brought up to value the finer things, but sometimes she saw that behind the curtain were some of the most valuable prizes after all.


End file.
